A crowdfunding project of American Friends of Yad Eliezer

Who Is Milka?

When people walk into the offices of Yad Eliezer they receive a warm and caring welcome from Milka Benziman. No matter what their problems are, they will receive empathy and support, and probably a solution.

Some of the requests are small: a bus ticket to get to school, a sandwich to fill a hungry belly, a pair of shoes to replace the ones with gaping holes, a warm winter coat or blanket, formula for an undernourished baby, money for antibiotics, or other basic needs that many of us take for granted.

Some of the requests are a bit bigger: the widow who needs her roof fixed so that leaking water does not do any further damage and so that she can rid her apartment of the pervasive mold that has been threatening her health; the eight year old girl fighting cancer for the second time in her young life; the orphaned bride who has no one to help her buy the essentials that she needs to build a new home; the battered wife who, after years of abuse, has finally decided to leave her husband and build a healthy new life for herself and her children, but is in dire need of a good lawyer.
These stories are heartbreaking. Milka is faced day after day, hour after hour, with the devastating realities of men, women and even children who come on their own to her office to beg for essentials for their families.

When she is able to help them, the joy in the room is palpable, and gratitude often is expressed in tears of relief that they are no longer carrying their crushing burden alone.

However, when Milka’s Fund is empty, all she can offer is a shoulder to cry on and a hand to hold.

We have created this new crowd-funding site in order to ensure that no legitimate request for help in meeting basic needs will ever be turned down again. We call upon you to help us support Milka in providing the essential resources for the distressed individuals who walk through her door.

Milka’s Fund

Each and every day, Yad Eliezer faces clients and cases with tragic circumstances. Some are irreparable and all we can do is provide a shoulder to cry on and a hand to hold. But some are fixable.

The elderly lady who needs a solar water heater so that she can have hot water in the winter. The widow who needs her roof fixed so that leaking water does not do any further damage. The paraplegic who has not been outdoors for years because he cannot descend from his 4th floor apartment without a lift. These and hundreds of other cases can be tremendously assisted with our collective help. Milka’s Fund addresses these individuals with compassion and grants them the funds that will enable them to live a life with their problem solved.

Our Mission

Our aim is to prevent poverty in Israel, one family at a time. Together, we can save an individual or a family from collapse resulting from an unexpected or unfortunate situation. The nature of each story may vary but the common factor is that your financial assistance can significantly improve their lives. A relatively small, but well placed sum can serve to stave off a downward spiral and prevent the onset of a debilitating situation.

How This Works

We initiated this website to allow you to help individual cases who may touch your heart. The money that Milka’s Fund collects for each case will be administered by American Friends of Yad Eliezer, a tax-exempt, 501(c)(3), US charity which administers tax-deductible receipts. The tax id number is 11-3459952. Tax deductible gifts are non-refundable. In accordance with IRS requirements, American Friends of Yad Eliezer retains exclusive discretion and control over the use of all donated funds. When American Friends of Yad Eliezer makes grants to Yad Eliezer in Israel from Milka’s Fund, Yad Eliezer distributes funds
directly to the specified cases, according to their needs.

By donating to Milka’s Fund for a particular story, you are indicating your preference to have your donation used for the needs of that individual or family. American Friends of Yad Eliezer and Yad Eliezer will make every effort to honor donor preferences, but reserve the right to distribute the funds as they best determine will accomplish the shared mission of preventing poverty in Israel. For example, if a particular family’s situation improves, the family may no longer require assistance, and the funds raised in that family’s honor may be used to assist another family in need. If you are interested, you can find out more about a particular case and you can actually visit the recipient of your generosity if you are in Israel.

Who Verifies The Stories?

Yad Eliezer’s experienced staff thoroughly verifies each story and if it fits the criteria we will post. For over 30 years Yad Eliezer has been at the forefront of combatting poverty in Israel. Through our many programs we distribute in excess of $30 million annually, in different shapes and forms. Yad Eliezer has earned the trust of its donors by ensuring that their money is being used in the most effective way possible. Our low overhead and transparency have earned us consecutive 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and the highest award from its Israeli equivalent, Midot.

Milka’s Fund is Yad Eliezer’s new online platform to share individual situations so you can be a part of their solutions. When a story that is beyond our means comes to our office we very often want to help but we just cannot. But with Milka’s Fund, and your generous donations, we can.

Each and every day, Milka and the staff of Yad Eliezer face human beings with tragic circumstances. Join us right now, and together we will change the face of poverty in Israel, one person at a time.